Bible In One Year-Day 235 (Friday, August 23, 2013)

Commentary: Amos4-6. The inputs of women in the nefarious activities of the men of Samaria were outlined in chapter four. Obviously, they encouraged their husbands to horribly sin against the poor. The chapter opened with literal appellation of the women as “fat cows” (feminine description). The nation was so bad to the point that they refused to yield to God’s chastisement through unfavorable circumstances. In the Prophet’s warnings, he described the awesomeness of God by telling of His attributes.

Amos 4:13 “For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, is his name.”

The sentence of God was a proclamation of defeat over the nation in battle, Amos5:3. This sentence says that only ten percent of those who go to war shall return, not as victors but as escapees. This is absolutely contrary to what God promised them in the time of Moses;

Leviticus 26:7-8 “And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.”

This is an indication that transgression against God’s command will incur a repercussion opposite the benefits to obedience. The solution for the Israelites not experience this shame was for them to come back to Him with a genuine heart, Amos5:4; “Seek Me and live”. They were seeking the Lord where He never approved, i.e. Bethel.

In 1 Kings11, King Solomon’s heart was turned against the Lord and God declared His judgment of splitting the kingdom and give one part to his servant and the other to his son because of David.

1 Kings 11:11 “Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.”

1 Kings 11:13 “Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.”

Jeroboam was the servant of Solomon who eventually was made King.

1 Kings 11:28 “And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field:”

1 Kings 11:31 “And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:”

We need to note very well that God specifically chose Jerusalem as the place of worship and not any other place.

1 Kings 11:32 “(But he shall have one tribe for my servant David’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:)”

This simply means that any other place chosen was an abomination and it was regarded as sin. There is no amount of rituals made in such places, they shall be in vain. For fear of the kingdom given to Jeroboam being returned to the house of David, Jeroboam built altars in Bethel and in Dan, ordained priests and psyched the people to begin to worship idols (1Kings12:26-33). This became serious sin against God.

1 Kings 12:26-27 “And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David: If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.”

Saul, David and King Solomon did not build any shrine for idols, Jeroboam started it as a king. These shrines were the places of worship the rich made sacrifices which God is against in Amos5. God rejected whatever was done there, Amos5:21-23, even their music.

In the Old Testament, it is only the place appointed by God to worship Him that is accepted to Him; any other places were not accepted. Jesus came to change the rule from building to gathering of the saints in His name. And if the Spirit of Christ is not present there, there is no worship.

Matthew 18:20 “For where two or three are assembled in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

The building no longer played a significant role in the worship of God; no matter how beautiful it is. It is a matter of the heart, i.e. the spirit of man.

John 4:23 “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”

Matthew 18:20 “For where two or three are assembled in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

Our gathering should not be in the flesh. Establishment of churches should not be of the flesh. Our preaching and teaching should not be of the flesh. Nothing should involve the flesh in the things of God

Jeroboam acted on the dictates of the flesh and anything that originates from the flesh is an abomination to God as the flesh profits nothing in the things of God.

God no longer demands worship in the flesh but in spirit and in truth. Any church built or installed out of bitterness of heart has become the rejected Bethel altar. We must be led by the Spirit of God for our services to be accepted by God.

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Amos7-9. Keep the fire of burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA

DANGER OF SHALLOW CHRISTIANITY
Bible In One Year-Day 234 (Thursday, August 22, 2013)
Commentary: Amos1-3. Amos was a farmer-turned-prophet. He was from the minority tribe in Judah. The nation was in false worship of God with theologically painted outward worship. In totality, the nation of Israel wasn’t in agreement with God anymore in spite of God’s favor towards them amongst the families of the earth;
Amos 3:2-3 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”
Chapters 1 and 2 are reflections of the atrocities committed by the tribes of Israel ranging from treachery, through rituals using unborn children to prosper, to betrayal of brotherly covenant. God gave reasons for His judgment on each tribe mentioned. However, there is only one common strategy God used to tackle these problems in Israel; attacking the roots.
Amos 2:9 “… yet I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots from beneath.”
The roots of the problems (fruits) were in the palaces. The palaces became strongholds for perpetuating evil in the land. There was great perversion of justice and the rich became oppressive by enslaving the poor (Amos2:6-8).
This same decay is prevalent in countries and communities in this present age. The worship of God is now corrupted through theology (which yields to morality) rather than pure relationship with God (an experience).
John 4:23-24 “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
Any worship involving the flesh is not true. Only that which is of the spirit is true worship.
The only way to bring a change is divine intervention in the affairs of the world. Once the roots are destroyed from beneath, the evil fruits will surely wither. The world needs divine intervention. These come in any form; protest, revolution, famine, draught, unfortunate death of the oppressors, etc. Each nation has been divinely assigned the way the decay is going to be addresses. It may differ from nation to nation. The summary is to bring God’s people back to Him through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Amos4-6. Keep the fire of burning and alive.
Pastor Supo Abayode
+1-302-230-6792
Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries
Delaware, USA

Bible In One Year-Day 234 (Thursday, August 22, 2013)

Commentary: Amos1-3. Amos was a farmer-turned-prophet. He was from the minority tribe in Judah. The nation was in false worship of God with theologically painted outward worship. In totality, the nation of Israel wasn’t in agreement with God anymore in spite of God’s favor towards them amongst the families of the earth;

Amos 3:2-3 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”

Chapters 1 and 2 are reflections of the atrocities committed by the tribes of Israel ranging from treachery, through rituals using unborn children to prosper, to betrayal of brotherly covenant. God gave reasons for His judgment on each tribe mentioned. However, there is only one common strategy God used to tackle these problems in Israel; attacking the roots.

Amos 2:9 “… yet I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots from beneath.”

The roots of the problems (fruits) were in the palaces. The palaces became strongholds for perpetuating evil in the land. There was great perversion of justice and the rich became oppressive by enslaving the poor (Amos2:6-8).

This same decay is prevalent in countries and communities in this present age. The worship of God is now corrupted through theology (which yields to morality) rather than pure relationship with God (an experience).

John 4:23-24 “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”

Any worship involving the flesh is not true. Only that which is of the spirit is true worship.

The only way to bring a change is divine intervention in the affairs of the world. Once the roots are destroyed from beneath, the evil fruits will surely wither. The world needs divine intervention. These come in any form; protest, revolution, famine, draught, unfortunate death of the oppressors, etc. Each nation has been divinely assigned the way the decay is going to be addresses. It may differ from nation to nation. The summary is to bring God’s people back to Him through the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Amos4-6. Keep the fire of burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA

Bible In One Year-Day 233 (Wednesday, August 21, 2013)

Commentary: Joel1-3. Nothing in this world is free from being subject to God, even Satan and his cohorts, at His command.

Joel 2:11 “And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?”

It is in Science that things are classified as LIVING and NON-LIVING things; it is not so in the spiritual world. Everything hears the spoken word and goes by the command of the Sovereign God especially in judgment. In the book of Joel, we saw this happen when the fearful appearance of an army of locusts ominously darkened the sky as cloud and everything green that could be food for any creature was stripped to sticks. It was not announced or expected. There was no sign of it before striking. This happened to the southern kingdom of Judah when the region was deep in sin. Natural things can become weapons of divine judgment; rain, famine, blessing, drought, fertility and natural disaster are all under God’s control.

Prophet Joel’s message was that of repentance to the sinning community, consolation and hope for those affected by the disaster. God still promised them future if they repented.

The disaster was very catastrophic and was effected by four kinds of locusts;

Joel 1:4 “That which the palmerworm (chewing or cutting locust) hath left hath the locust (swarming locust) eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm (hopping or crawling locust) eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller (consuming or stripping locust) eaten.”  (parenthesis mine)

This attack left behind dryness of joy from the people as concluded in Joel1:12

Joel 1:12 “The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.”

Unfortunately, many lives, homes, families, communities, clans and nations are passing through this type of situation where one problem hands over to another worse problem as if in a relay race. Joy is absent in many lives and what used to be green is reduced to nothingness. Chapter two of the book (verses 1-11) describes the experience of the people during the attack. Verses 12-18 is the message of the Lord to His devastated people;

Joel 2:12-13 “Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.”

God’s demand in seeking for deliverance is not an outward show of religious practices but with a sincere heart. The grace and mercy of God can only be fully enjoyed when a sincere heart leads. The remaining part of the chapter is the message of hope for a sincere heart;

Joel 2:32 “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.”

God is faithful and His lovingkindness never fails. The central message of Joel is on the day of the Lord. In this book, this refers to two experiences; judgment (or tribulation) and the outpour of His Spirit. Judgment to those that sin has made to become God’s enemy and restoration to those who heard the word and repented.

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Amos1-3. Keep the fire of burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA

Bible In One Year-Day 232 (Tuesday, August 20, 2013)

Commentary: Hosea11-14. Do you know that what you do in the secret could become a garment round you when you stand before the Lord? Read this;

Hosea 7:2 “And they consider not in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness: now their own doings have beset (surrounded) them about; they are before my face.”

A priest was accused before the Lord in Zech3:1-3. The iniquity of Ephraim was uncovered before the Lord and this affected God’s intention for them. The nation was full of liars, thieves and fraudsters. Many vices were standing against them; nothing is hidden before the Lord. The iniquity of Ephraim was so great that he was growing gray hair in it without knowing that he was spending his life in vanity. This is absolutely prevalent amongst Christians today. Vanity is the yardstick for promotion and ordination.  The hearts of men are far from God even if they sang good choruses and preached like angels. Programs are organized to display the eloquence of motivational speakers and to serve tables. Prayers are from the bitterness of the heart and not in the spirit.

Hosea 7:14 “And they have not cried unto me with their heart, when they howled upon their beds: they assemble themselves for corn and wine, and they rebel against me.”

Ministers’ retreats must be with three square meals otherwise there will be insignificant turnout; it used to be with fasting and prayers. The glory of God that used to be experienced in prayer meetings is departed and replaced with entertainment; this is because the fraudsters are multiplying as spiritual leaders and vanity is sown as cassocks. The pulpit is compromised as the messages are “feel good” messages. The claim of “born again” is not faithfully to God any longer but to the pastor.

Hosea 7:16 “They return, but not to the most High: they are like a deceitful bow: …”

The ministers’ are deeply corrupted and lead people to increase sin, Hosea9:7-9.

Hosea 9:7-9 “The days of visitation are come, the days of recompence are come; Israel shall know it: the prophet is a fool, the spiritual man is mad, for the multitude of thine iniquity, and the great hatred. The watchman of Ephraim was with my God: but the prophet is a snare of a fowler in all his ways, and hatred in the house of his God. They have deeply corrupted themselves, as in the days of Gibeah: therefore he will remember their iniquity, he will visit their sins.”

It is quite unfortunate that the more churches we have, the more societal decay in vogue. Some say that it would have been worse if not for the churches. This is not true. We do not need more churches for revival, but we need revival for more souls which translates to more churches. Without revival, there can’t be genuine churches but money makers. Only revival can turn the world upside down for God as in the days of the Apostles. Places of worship are turned to den of thieves, atrocities multiply and the bible interpreted to suite felony against God. Romans chapter one is meaningless in terms of abuse of natural use of our body parts.

Romans 1:26-27 “For this cause God gave them up to vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.”

The ordinations in churches are mostly not of God but as approved by men. “God-fatherism” is a plague. There is the need for repentance before there could be revival. Beloved, whether we agree or not, the greatest detective is your sin.

Numbers 32:23 “… and be sure your sin will find you out.”

Mercy is, however, available for whoever repents.

Proverbs 28:13 “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Joel1-3. Keep the fire of burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA